Religion: Building a Spiritual Bridge: John Paul's Encyclical Appeals

For more than a generation, the Roman Catholic Church in Eastern Europe has been vigorously attacked by Communist regimes. The East bloc countries have promoted atheism, and some of them have arrested high church officials and priests, suppressed religious orders and all but abolished religious education. Determined to strengthen the church's position and that of its estimated 106 million followers in the Soviet satellites, Pope John Paul II has often bluntly denounced antireligious acts. Last week the Pope issued a 47-page encyclical honoring Cyril and Methodius, two 9th century saints who were missionaries to the Slavs. In it the first Slavic...